Life preserver



June 12, 1945. R, E, COOMBS v 2,377,865

LIFE PRESERVER Filed A ril 14, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. ROBERT E. 0004488 BY c/ ATG'OR/VEY R. E. COOMBS LIFEPRESERVER June 12, 1945.

Filed April 14, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INYENTOR. ROBERT E; COOMBS Afro/mar Patented June 12, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE LIFE PRESERVER Robert E. Coombs, Washington, D. 0., assignor to the United States Government, as represented by the Secretary of the Navy Application April 14, 1944, Serial No. 531,000

13 Claims. (01. 9-20) (Granted under the act of March .3, .1883, as amended April 30, 1928; 37.0 0. G,. 757) This invention relates to life preservers and more particularly to reversible, vest-like life preservers adapted to be worn on the upper part of the body to support the wearer in an upright slightly backwardly inclined position when in the water.

By reason of the fact that life preservers of the type here considered must be worn at all times by all those aboard ships on the high seas in wartime, it is imperative that the buoyant material used therein be soft and yielding in order that the wearer may have some degree of com fort. Floss type buoyant materials, such as kapok, milkweed floss, etc.. have been found to be eminently satisfactory for this purpose and are widely used notwithstanding the fact that they will pack and lose their buoyancy when subject to continued pressure or crushing. Some of the life preservers WO-In aboard ship also become soiled, particularly those worn by seasick persons, rendering them unsuitable for further use. The loss of kapok, the most important of the floss type buoyant materials, due to the discarding of these damaged and soiled jackets is serious as no more kapok will be available when present stockpiles are exhausted until after the war.

The life jackets now in use have been found to be objectionable in several other respects. In abandoning a sinking ship, it is often necessary for the men aboard to jump into the water from an appreciable height while wearing their life jackets. These jackets are invariably of a poor fit, particularly at the Waist, and very often the force of impact on hitting the water tears off theiacket, or causes it to strike the wearer with considerable force, sometimes stunning or injuring him. This loose fit at the waist also permits the buoyancy of the jacket to cause it to ride up onthe body of the wearer when in the water with a consequent loss in its ability to hold the wearer in a safe position. Sinkings of vessels in cold seas, usually covered with oil from the vessels,

together with the hazards attending rescue operations, make it imperative that such operations be carried out in haste, usually without the aid of ships boats. The men to be rescued are often exhausted or unconscious and must be pulled or lifted bodily into the rescuing vessel, and. as the oil on the water coats the men, making them slippery and hard tohold, many have been lost by reason of the inability of the rescuers to obtain a sure grip on the man in the water.

It is the object of this invention to provide a reversible life jacket with means tor lifting the wearer.

A further object of this invention is to provide a single lifting means for a life jacket which is operable regardless of which side of the jacket is worn outermost.

A further object of this invention is to provide a life jacket with means for fitting it to wearers of various sizes without damaging the buoyant material.

A further object of this invention is to provide a life jacket with means for procuring a close fit at the waist of the wearer regardless of his size and without damaging the buoyant material.

A further object of this invention is to provide a life jacket with removable buoyant elements.

The embodiment of the invention as disclosed in the drawings comprises a reversible life preserver jacket, vest-dike in form, adapted to be worn on the upper part of the body and containing separately formed removable pads .of buoyant material along the front thereof and in the upper part of the back. Crossed drawstrings are provided at the waist to enable the material of which the jacket is made to gather at the small of the back of the wearer, thus avoiding any puckering of the lower edge .of the buoyant material, preventing damage thereto. A single strap is attached to the back of the life preserver, and is adapted to be fastened around the same regardless of which side is outermost, serving as a means for grasping the wearer.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating the present preferred embodiment of the invention, Fig. 1 is a plan view of the life preserver shown extended, Fig. 2 is a section taken on the line 2-4 of Fig. 1, Fig. 3 is a plan view of, the life preserver showing the drawstrings pulled to gather the cover at the back of the jacket, and Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional view along the line 4W4 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, the body of the jacket comprises two pieces of drill or twill HI and H, one for either side, of the general configuration shown in Fig. 1, sewn around the outer edges and around the arm holes, forming a cover of double thickness. A reinforcing tape 4.0 is sewn over the seam at the top of the jacket to prevent tearing thereof at the shoulder seams. Seams '30 and .32 at the shoulder and seams 3i and 33 at the sides divide the cover into three pockets, a backpocket l2 and side or front pockets 3 1 and 35. These pockets house the buoyant pads I3, 28 and 29 each of which comprise a fabric casing l4 stuffed with a buoyant floss l5,

They are inserted in the pockets through the lower edge before the stitching thereof. The pads 28 and 29 extend practically the full length of the jacket while pad I4 occupies only the upper half of the back pocket l2 and is retained therein by stitching 23. When the jacket is discarded,

' these pads of buoyant material are salvaged for only one row of stitching 31 need be removed and replaced and it prevents tangling or the misplacement of the drawstring as would be the case if the hem were formed by or between the covers and II. This arrangement also permits the use of longer buoyant pads 28 and 29 in the side pockets 34 and 35, respectively, for the same overall length of jacket than would be the case if the hem for the drawstrings were located below the buoyant material as is now the practice in the art. The drawstrings 2| and 22, carried in the hem 20, have their ends attached to the far sides of the back of the jacket. That is to say, drawstring 2! has an end thereof affixed to the back of the jacket by tacking 38 on the side farthest removed from the free end of the drawstring. Drawstring 22 is similarly affixed to the opposite side of the back by tacking 39. Thus, the drawstrings cross or overlap in the hem at the back of the jacket ina region free of any buoyant material, permitting the jacket to gather freely when the drawstrings are pulled. By reason of the point of attachment of the drawstringa'the gathering is limited to the back of the jacket, as shown in Fig. 3, and does not extend to the hem adjacent the bottom of the pads 28 and 29 thereby avoiding any crushing of packing of the buoyant material which would impair its efficiency or cause binding of the drawstrings. When worn, the drawstrings are pulled tight around the waist of the wearer and tied in front. The amount of gathering of the goods at the back depends on the size of the person, but in any case provides a tight fit around the waist to prevent the impact occasioned by hitting the water from tearing off the jacket and prevents the jacket from riding up on the wearer when in the water.

The means carried by the jacket for the purpose of enabling rescuers to obtain a grip on the wearer, either by hand or a boat hook, so that he may be lifted bodily out of the water, comprises a strap i9 adapted to be fastened around the wearer of the jacket. A hem I8 is formed in the back of the jacket, parallel to the bottom thereof, and below the back buoyant pad l3 and arm holes 24. As the material is of double thickness the hem is formed by two parallel rows of stitching 26. This hem extends almost the full width of the back, terminating at either end in apertures cut through the double thickness of cloth. The edges of the apertures may be finished with a buttonhole stitch. The strap l9, threaded through hem I8 and securely sewn to the jacket as indicated by tacking 21, has its free ends passing through apertures 25 which are of a size to permit the wearer of the jacket to grasp the strap and pull it therethrough when the jacket is put on with the strap inside thereof, thus avoiding the necessity of removing and redonning the jacket merely to get the strap on the outside. Thi provides the necessary reversibility of the jacket with the use of but one strap which not only reduces the cost, but avoids the inevitable tangling that makes the use of two straps, one on each side, objectionable. The apertures 25 are placed under the armholes 24 so that they may be readily reached by the wearer of the jacket for grasping the strap, when the strap ends are inside the jacket, or for holding them in a readily accessible position when outside the jacket. The strap H! has a fastening means, such as buckle 4| on one end thereof.

A hand strap It may be securely attached to the upper part of the back of the jacket and serves as additional means for aiding rescuers in obtaining a grip on the jacket.

From the foregoing description it is readily seen that it is immaterial which side of the jacket is outermost when donned. If the strap ends happen to be on the outside of the jacket then it is merely necessary to grasp the same and buckle the strap around the front of the jacket. If the strap ends happen to be inside the jacket, then the wearer grasps the strap through apertures 25 and pulls the free ends therethrough and then buckles them across the front of the jacket. When the wearer is picked up by this strap, no strain is placed on the jacket and it need not be of special strength or construction.

While I have described the preferred form of my invention I do not wish to limit myself to the precise details as shown, but wish to avail myself of such variations and modifications as may come within the scope of the appended claims.

The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government of the United States of America for governmental purposes without the payment of any royalties thereon or therefor.

I claim:

1. A life preserver comprising a Vest adapted to support the wearer in an inclined position, a strap attached to the back of said vest, there being spaced apertures in the back of said vest through which the free ends of said strap may be drawn whereby the said strap may be fastened around the outside of the said vest regardless of which side is outermost.

2. A reversible life preserver comprising a vest having a back therein, a hem in the back of said vest extending throughout a substantial ortion of the back there being, apertures extending through said back adjacent the ends of said hem, a strap in said hem, the free ends of said strap being adapted to pass through said apertures, whereby the said strap may be placed around the outside of the remainder of said vest regardless of which side thereof is outermost.

3. A reversible life jacket opening down the front comprising a cover of double thickness, buoyant material within said cover, a horizontal hem formed at the back, there being apertures in said cover at the ends of said hem, and a strap in said hem adapted to pass through said apertures for fastening around the front of said cover regardless of which side is outermost.

4. A reversible life preserver comprising a cover of double thickness, said cover divided into three vertically extending pockets, buoyant material in said pockets, the said material in the center pocket occupying only the upper portion thereof, a hem in said cover under the said buoyant material in the said center pocket and extending almost the full width of said center pocket, there bein apertures in said cover at the ends of said hem, a

lifting strap in said hem, the free ends of said strap passing through said apertures on either side of said cover whereby said strap may be passed around the outside of the rest of said cover regardless of which side is outermost.

5. A reversible life jacket comprising a cover of double thickness, said cover divided into three vertically extending pockets, buoyant pads in said pockets, said pad in said back pocket occupying only the'upper half thereof, said pads each comprising a casing stufied with buoyant material, a hem in said cover under the said pad in the center pocket extending across the width of said back pocket, there being apertures in said cover adjacent the ends of said hem, a lifting strap in said hem, the free ends of said strap being adapted to pass through said apertures on one side of said cover whereby the said strap may be passed over the front pockets regardless of which side of the said jacket is outermost.

6. A life preserver as claimed in claim and a second hem in the lower edge of said cover, overlapping drawstrings in said hem attached to said cover at the back thereof.

'7; A life preserver comprising a jacket, buoyant material in the front and upper back of said jacket, a hem in the lower edge of said jacket, a pair of overlapping drawstrings in said hem attached only to opposite sides of the back of said jacket whereby when said drawstrings are pulled the said jacket gathers at the back between the points of attachment of the drawstrings rather than adjacent the buoyant material.

8. A life preserver jacket comprising a cover of double thickness, said cover divided into three vertical pockets, one of the side pockets being adapted to fold over the other side pocket to form the front of said jacket, the remaining pocket forming the back of said jacket, buoyant material in the upper half of the said back pocket, and buoyant material in the other pockets, a hem. at the bottom of said cover, a pair of drawstrings overlapping in said hem, said drawstrings in that part of the said hem under the said back pocket being attached to opposite sides of the back whereby when the said drawstrings are pulled the said hem gathers only at the said back pocket.

9. A life preserver jacket comprising a cover of double thickness, said cover divided into three vertical pockets, buoyant materia1 in the upper half of the center of said pockets, and buoyant material in the other pockets, a strip of fabric attached to the inside of the lower edge of said cover forming a hem running the Width thereof and alongside of the said buoyant material in the said other pockets, a pair of drawstrings in said hem, said drawstrings overlapping and one end of each thereof being attached to opposite sides of the back of said cover, whereby when the said drawstrings are pulled the said cover gathers at the back between the points of attachment of the said drawstrings rather than adjacent the buoyant material.

10. A life jacket as claimed in claim '7 and a strap attached at its center to the back of said cover, there being horizontally spaced apertures in the back of said cover adapted to receive the free ends of said strap whereby the ends of said strap may be fastened over the front of said jacket regardless of which'side is outermost.

11. A life preserver comprising a vest having a cover of double thickness, said cover being divided into two front pockets and a back pocket, removable buoyant members in said front pockets and in the upper part only of said back pocket, each of said members comprising a casing having a buoyant material therein, a hem at the bottom of said jacket, a pair of overlapping drawstrings in said hem each attached to a side cf the back pocket opposite to the other whereby the cover gathers at the back pocket only when the drawstrings are pulled.

12. A life preserver as claimed in claim 8 and a second hem in the said back pocket, there being apertures in said back pocket adjacent the ends of said second hem, a strap in said second hem, the free ends of said strap passing through said apertures whereby the said free ends may be fastened across the outside of said front pockets regardless of which side is outermost.

13. A life preserver comprising a vest, buoyant material in the front and in the upper part only of the back of said vest, a strap attached to the back of said vest, there being horizontally spaced apertures in the back of said vest adapted to receive the free ends of said strap whereby the free ends of said strap may be fastened over the front of said vest regardless of which side is outermost.

ROBERT E. COOMBS. 

